Before Holi, food safety teams intensify checks for adulteration

New Delhi: As trays of gujiyas and namkeen flood markets ahead of Holi, food safety teams in the capital have initiated intensive inspections across the city to ensure that festive treats reaching consumers meet quality standards. The inspections follow a nationwide directive from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), which has launched the 'Holi Anti-Adulteration Drive 2026' and have asked all states and Union Territories to conduct checks and sampling during the festive surge.
Holi usually brings a sharp rise in demand for milk, khoa, paneer, ghee, edible oils and sweets—categories that regulators said were vulnerable to dilution, substandard ingredients or unsafe additives. Delhi, too, has stepped up enforcement in line with the campaign. Health minister Pankaj Kumar Singh said 66 samples were collected during the special drive, comprising 54 surveillance samples and 12 legal samples. "Teams were deployed in major khoya and paneer mandis to check quality and collect samples, and action was initiated wherever violations were found," he said. Singh said he instructed officials not to confine inspections to organised mandis but to intensify checks in densely populated areas where khoya and paneer are prepared and supplied locally. Mobile testing vans—Food Safety on Wheels—were deployed in crowded markets for spot testing and consumer awareness. Samples collected during inspections will be sent to laboratories for analysis and action will follow in cases of non-compliance.FSSAI has asked all states and UTs to upload inspection and sampling data on central monitoring platforms by March 31, signalling tight national oversight of the campaign. During past festive seasons, complaints ranged from synthetic colours in sweets to starch adulteration in milk products and low-quality edible oils. Authorities said this year's drive focused on prevention—ensuring unsafe food did not reach consumers.